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Dolphins Stadium - Buy Florida Marlins tickets for Dolphins Stadium at TickCo.com!
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Dolphin Stadium /
Florida Marlins
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for a larger photo)
| Year Opened | 1987 |
| Capacity | 47,622 |
| Architect | HOK Sport+Venue+Event |
| Dimensions | 330L, 385LC, 434LC, 404C, 385RC, 345R |
| Playing Surface | Grass |
| Last Visit | 2005 |
| Web Site | www.floridamarlins.com |
| Online Broadcasts | Yes |
| Online Ticket Sales | Yes |
| Phone | 305/623-6100 |
| Ticket Prices (2005) | Founders Field Box $85 Individual Game/$95 Premium Game; Founders Club Box $72.00/$80.00; Infield Box $31/$34; Club Zone A $38/$42; Club Zone B; $33/$36; Club Zone C $27/$30; Terrace Box $20/$22; Outfield Reserved $14/$16; Outfield Reserved Kids $8/$10; Fish Tank $8/$10 Fish Tank Kids $4/$5; Upper Deck A $14/$16; Upper Deck A Kids $8/$10; Upper Deck B $12/$14; Upper Deck B Kids $6/$7 |
| League | National League |
| Parking | Dolphins Stadium sits on the county line between Dade and Broward County. There is an abundance of parking for Marlins games considering the surrounding stadium lots are equipped for nearly 70,000 Dolphins fans. |
| Directions | Take I-95 to Ives Dairy Road. Make a right turn and proceed west for five miles. The stadium will be on the right. Take the Florida Turnpike south to Exit 2X, which is the NW 199th and stadium exit. Upon exiting the turnpike, the stadium is immediately on the right. University Drive south becomes NW 27th Avenue in Dade County, to Dan Marino Blvd. Make a left and the stadium is on the left. |
| Written by: | Dewayne Hankins |
| Rating |  |
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Every spring for the last century fans have flocked to Florida to catch a preview of what their team will look like for the upcoming season. The aura that is Spring Training in the sunshine state is something unmatched by any other professional sport's preseason.
And so in 1993 some thought it would be a great idea to extend baseball past those final days of March and introduce Floridians to a full season of Major League Baseball. Yet here we are 12 years later still trying to figure out if it's going to work in either Tampa Bay or Miami.
In Florida's defense, the state's two clubs are far from model franchises. Tampa Bay is still waiting for the first winning season from their Devil Rays, who play in a strange indoor park where balls bounce off catwalks. Head south and you'll find the Florida Marlins, who have won two World Series and can boast an already impressive alumni of superstar players in their 14-year history.
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What's holding back the Marlins, of course, is Joe Robbie/Pro Player/Dolphins Stadium, a great place to catch a football game but so far unsuccessful in sustaining any kind of fan base for baseball. In fact, three separate ownership groups have tried and failed miserably to build their own baseball-only facility.
You see, the problem with Dolphins Stadium is that you are constantly reminded that you are at the Dolphins' stadium. From the retired numbers of former Dolphins players inscribed on the upper deck bowl to the endless sea of orange seats, you are constantly reminded that this football stadium has been turned into a "temporary" place for baseball.
Ballparks are places that you fall in love with for all of their different and unique reasons, but if you never believe that you are, in fact, in a ballpark, than how can you ever sell yourself on the whole experience?
"Miguel Cabrera hits a drive! Way back! And it's off the Dan Marino plaque in left field. Home run!"
See what I mean?
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As a natural football complex, Dolphins Stadium comes with all the quarks involved in trying to fit the luxuries of a modern ballpark into a football-first facility. The outfield dimensions have power allies where home runs go to die. Then there's the stadium's trademark Bermuda triangle in left-center field, which juts out to 434 feet. Incidentally, quite a few inside-the-park-homers have been hit in Dolphins Stadium (Clint Barmes of the Colorado Rockies hit one during our visit).
The football seats fold back in left field to create what used to be called the "teal monster" (the name has mysteriously disappeared ever since the Marlins took teal out of their color scheme). The left field scoreboard extends 26.5 feet high and is the only other trademark of the stadium.
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Intimacy is not you'll get when you go see a baseball game at Dolphins Stadium. The facility seats roughly 65,000 for baseball, so when the Marlins announce a sellout (which is 36,331 officially), the sea of orange seats in the upper deck is still very apparent. Most of the seats aren't very close to the action, and the only intimate baseball-designed seating are the high-priced tickets behind home plate referred to as the Founder's Field. Those will cost you up to $95 a game.
The seating configuration is also set up for football, so you usually have to sit at a funny angle to get a good view of the game -- especially when you have seats near the foul pole. The Marlins try to make up for their expansive seating selection and interesting arrangements with some of the cheapest tickets in Major League Baseball. The Fish Tank, located in the outfield, has plenty of seats for $8 apiece. You get a great view of the game for the price, and every half inning Juan Pierre creates a frenzy by throwing a baseball to the section.
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We went for a 1:05 p.m. game and there's no doubt about it, it's hot. The endurance required for staying a full nine innings is something one must fully prepare for. When the Marlins discuss the necessity for a retractable roof at a potential new stadium, it's those day games that make you realize it's just as much for the sun as it is for the daily showers.
One thing's for sure: the Marlins will never draw well at Dolphins Stadium. But would the problem be solved with a new facility? For as tough as it is to watch a baseball game in a football facility, the A's and Twins seem to draw well when their teams are successful. The Marlins, however, can't seem to draw more than 20,000 on a weekday, even for a heated wild-card match up with the Phillies.
Maybe weather is the mitigating factor for the Fish and a retractable roof would solve all of their attendance woes but maybe, just maybe, baseball wasn't meant to be played in Florida past those mild days of spring.
(Editor's note: Dewayne Hankins formerly worked for the Florida Marlins. He is now a full-time employee of August Publications.)
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Concessions
Dolphins Stadium has your standard ballpark
fare plus a few regional touches, such as Cuban
food. Water, a definite
necessity at a Marlins game is rather high-priced
(as is everything on the menu). and
you aren't allowed to bring any in the gates with
you. My advice: drink plenty of fluids before you
get to the stadium, especially if you plan on
trying to sit through a matinee game.
For the Kids
In the past few years the Marlins have added
an assortment of activities for kids to do on the
concourses to try and restore what was a dead fan
base. There are areas for kids to learn
fundamentals, play games and even bounce around
and burn off energy. There's also a big list of things to check
out during a rain delay, which happens rather often
as you might imagine.
Ballpark History
Dolphins Stadium was built for $115 million
and finished in time for the 1987 NFL season. The
stadium hosted it's first exhibition baseball game
on March 11, 1988 when the Los Angeles Dodgers and
Baltimore Orioles played to a sold out Joe Robbie
Stadium. On April 5, 1993 the Marlins played their
inaugural game at what was then called Pro Player
Stadium. Before the 2005 season, the stadium was
renamed Dolphins Stadium to announce to everyone
that baseball is no longer welcome here (weeks
earlier the Dolphins had announced they would be
kicking the Marlins out after the 2010 season,
they have since changed their minds).
Before/After the
Game
Your best bet before the game is to bring a
grill and cooler to tailgate in the expansive parking lot.
There is nothing of interest within walking
distance of the stadium to do before or after the
game. Another example of why it's a great facility
for football and one that doesn't work so well for
baseball.
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for a larger photo)
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